Michael DeBakey High School for Health Professions, a New American High School and Project Grad

An American Youth Policy Forum Field Trip — October 26-27, 2000

The purpose of this field trip was to showcase a highly regarded career academy and New American High School, the Michael DeBakey High School for Health Professions, and a community-based, K-12 education reform initiative, Project GRAD.

Michael DeBakey High School for Health Professions, 10/26

Michael DeBakey High School for Health Professions (DeBakey) was established in 1972 as a partnership between the Houston Independent School District (HISD) and Baylor College of Medicine (BCM). The first school of its kind in the nation, DeBakey was designed to increase opportunities for all students to gain access or enter careers in medicine, science, and the health professions. DeBakey, a magnet career academy that draws students throughout the HISD, has grown from 45 students attending classes in the Baylor College of Medicine facilities to a current enrollment of over 700 students in grades nine through twelve. The DeBakey campus is a modern, freestanding building in the Texas Medical Center. Students wear a uniform with a white lab coat. DeBakey was recognized as a New American High School in 1998. [1]

DeBakey is known as one of the strongest college preparatory high schools in Texas. Approximately 1,200 students apply for admission to the school annually, but only 250 students are selected. Student selection is based upon interest in health sciences, previous academic performance, standardized test scores, conduct, and attendance. The current DeBakey student body reflects the ethnic diversity of the overall HISD student population: 37.7% African-American, 24.6% Asian, 26.2% Hispanic, and 11.5% white. Students with whom we met indicated that getting into DeBakey was not so difficult (in terms of entry requirements), but that staying committed to the curriculum and required work was.

The curriculum is solidly academic: four years each of mathematics, science, health science, and social studies are required. Even in Physical Education, the teacher has students write essays on health topics. Students in the 12th grade participate in clinical externships at the Texas Medical Center. One hundred hours of community service also are required, but students say it is easy to meet that requirement because so many clubs and activities are focused on service. Being on a block schedule allows the teachers more flexibility in scheduling project-based work and labs. The schedule also gives students the freedom to pursue internships and other career-based activities.

While DeBakey has a number of clubs and activities, many of the traditional high school activities are non-existent. For example, there are no sports teams or athletic competitions and little organized music or drama. Some students return to their home district high school to participate in sports, but find that the work required at DeBakey makes many of these extracurricular activities impossible (due to longer days and bus schedules, etc.). As a result, students at DeBakey are very focused on their studies and career possibilities in the health professions and are very motivated to succeed.

Currently, 99% of DeBakey’s graduates enter postsecondary education. A follow-up study of the 2,033 students who graduated from DeBakey between 1975-1987 indicates that the school had successfully prepared students to access postsecondary education and careers in the health-related and scientific professions. Respondents indicated that they:

• had accessed postsecondary education in large numbers (92%)
• were doing well in their respective undergraduate programs, averaging slightly over a 3.0 on a 4.0 scale
• had maintained interest in and were pursuing studies leading to careers in the health sciences (56%)
• preferred medicine as a first career choice (30%).

Dr. Charlesetta Deason has been Principal at DeBakey for ten years and has been a strong leader for the school, according to Dr. Thompson of Baylor College of Medicine, the high school’s primary partner. This consistency of vision and leadership has created excellent working relationships with organizations in the Texas Medical Center, other business and professional leaders, the community, parents, and HISD. Dr. Deason’s philosophy is to expect a great deal from students, teachers, and partners, but to give them the flexibility and support they need to do their job to their fullest potential.

Dr. Deason has worked over the years to establish an outside endowment fund to help provide funds for services that would not normally be covered by HISD. She has been able to use the endowment for expenses such as paying bonuses or higher salaries to teachers in shortage areas and providing scholarships to needy students. The endowment is managed by a community organization, which helps ensure fairness in the use of the funds, yet it allows the school additional support and flexibility in meeting its academic goals and other needs.

Students at DeBakey receive a great deal of attention and preparation for college and careers. Mandatory classes include speech, SAT prep, study skills, and mock trials. Students said they like the school because the curriculum is more interesting, more interactive, with labs and hands-on activities, and there is more communication with teachers. Students also pointed out how important counselors are, because they ensure that students take the right courses to get into college or to follow a career.

All teachers spend extra time with students during lunch hour or before and after school. There is a commitment by the teachers to go out of their way to help students when they need it. The school offers double math in freshman year to students who did not have Algebra I when they arrived, or it gives them the option of attending a summer institute on Algebra to meet the requirement. Ninth graders are taught specialized study skills, they attend several open houses at Baylor College of Medicine to learn more about careers in the health professions, and all 9th graders are paired with a 12th grader to provide advice, help the student adjust, and be a mentor. All students learn how to use the university library for their research and they all take Advanced Placement (AP) Calculus, because the school believes that it is important for students take rigorous high level courses.

Classes use a variety of teaching and assessment techniques, from class discussion, projects, preceptorship (internships), presentation of portfolios, to student journals. Journals are a valuable learning tool for both teachers and students. Each week, a student sets up learning objectives for each class and then describes in the journal how the objectives were met. The teachers then review the journal to see how the student has met the objectives and provide assistance as needed. The journals provide a record of achievement and demonstrate academic growth, as well as being a source of continuous assessment. Students also get a great deal of practice in writing daily entries, a necessary part of the medical profession. At the end of junior year, students select an internship at one of the institutions in the Texas Medical Center, and during their senior year they work 12 weeks in that internship position. Also, during senior year, each student has to develop a "Millennium Project" that will tie together all of his or her work from four years in a final presentation.

Dr. Deason has been able to assemble a high quality group of teachers, who want to be involved with the academic rigor of the school and the connection to the health professions. Collaboration between teachers is strongly encouraged and supported. For example, a current project on the recent outbreak of the Ebola virus in Africa involves science, geography, social studies, and English teachers. Dr. Deason is able to hire her own staff from the general pool of HISD teachers, or she can find a candidate and ask the candidate to apply to the HISD pool, and then have that person assigned to DeBakey. Despite DeBakey’s reputation, Dr. Deason indicated that it is very hard to find teachers to teach Advanced Placement math and science courses.

One unique program offered at DeBakey is the Houston Premedical Academy, which is a special undergraduate program to help students with their career choices and to encourage them to become physicians. Up to ten graduating DeBakey students are selected to attend the Houston Premedical Academy each year. These students also receive provisional acceptance into Baylor College of Medicine, but they are required to complete all baccalaureate degree requirements of the University of Houston before being accepted by the medical school. The entire program lasts eight years, from entrance into the Houston Premedical Academy through graduation from medical school. During their time in the Academy, students participate in summer activities designed to increase their awareness and understanding of issues related to medical education and the practice of medicine. All students selected for the program receive scholarship support from the University of Houston, sufficient to cover tuition and fees.

DeBakey has had many years to develop a rigorous academic curriculum and strong partnerships with the employer and non-profit community involved with the Baylor College of Medicine and the Texas Medical Center. The focus on health professions gives the school a clear mission and organizing principle for its teaching and learning. A variety of alternative performance assessments are used as well as connections to the real world of work through internships and service projects. The small size of DeBakey allows for a more intimate learning environment and provides many supports for students and contact with adults.

Dinner Meeting with Assistant Superintendents, Houston Independent School District, visit on 10/26/00

The group spent a pleasant evening with three assistant superintendents of the Houston Independent School District: Kaye Stripling, Southwest District Superintendent; Thelma Garza, East District Superintendent, and Debbie Singleton, Alternative District Superintendent (who oversees DeBakey and the other magnet and alternative schools in Houston).

Houston Independent School District, the largest public school system in Texas and the seventh largest in the United States, is led by Dr. Rod Paige, who has held the position of Superintendent since 1994. Dr. Paige had also served on the Houston School Board, which allowed him to learn about the system and establish solid relationships prior to his position as Superintendent. HISD offers all students an intensive core curriculum and specialized, challenging instructional and career programs. HISD has recently established new standards that every student must meet to earn promotion from one grade to the next. Project CLEAR, a comprehensive initiative to align curriculum with fundamental knowledge and skills expected of students, is contributing to a steady rise in scholastic performance. A component of Project CLEAR is a teacher-training workshop that will help teachers ensure they have the necessary skills to teach Algebra to ensure student success.

HISD is a data driven system that rates every school on dropout rates and academic performance on standardized tests. In addition, HISD uses data to track student performance to determine at the classroom level what teachers are doing right and where teachers might need help. Performance contracts are in place for principals and assistant superintendents, who are held accountable for student performance, but who are also given flexibility to carry out their work. Dr. Paige is authorized to negotiate salaries for principals based on their performance and special needs of the school.

Dr. Paige’s staff said that Dr. Paige pushes very hard to redistribute resources to the schools that are the most needy. He believes that resources should be concentrated on the lowest-performing schools and that there should be flexibility to make the necessary changes to improve schools, such as removing teachers when necessary.

When asked of their opinions about the Texas Assessment of Academic Skills (TAAS), the HISD staff said they know there are problems with standardized tests like TAAS, and that they can be improved, but that the focus on minority student achievement has done more to change the culture of schools than anything else. A unique strategy put in place by HISD to improve low-performing schools requires school leaders to hold community meetings to help raise awareness of their needs and how parents and community members can help support their students and the school’s efforts.

The focus on improvement for all students has resulted in increased scores for all students in the HISD (who are predominantly minority). From 1999 to 2000, reading scores on the TAAS increased from a score of 79 to 84 for 3rd graders; from 80 to 85 for 8th graders; and from 84 to 87 for 10th graders. In mathematics, scores increased from 77 to 84 for 3rd graders; from 76 to 84 for 8th graders; and from 77 to 83 for 10th graders.

The percentage of HISD tenth-graders passing all TAAS tests taken has increased 36 points since 1995, beating the state increase during that time by eight percentage points. The scores show that African-American students at HISD perform better on the TAAS than African-Americans statewide; that 88% of African-American tenth-graders at HISD passed the TAAS reading test, compared to 85% statewide, and that 77 % of African-Americans at HISD passed the math test, compared to 74% statewide. Hispanic students at HISD also made strong gains on this year’s TAAS. Hispanic HISD tenth-graders passed the reading test at a rate of 80%, up four points from 1999. Hispanic HISD tenth-graders now meet the state average passing rate in math, up 9 percentage points at HISD to 80% passing.

Dr. Paige also has a firm commitment to professional and leadership development not only for principals and teachers, but for his staff as well. Every other week, Dr. Paige holds Teaching and Learning sessions with the assistant superintendents, to discuss education reform issues. These are intentional discussions to focus on the latest research and emerging best practices in education; participants are not allowed to discuss any regular business or problems.

The underlying impression we had of Dr. Paige from his staff was of a strong leader, committed to helping every child learn to high standards, who demands results and accountability, but who supports his staff with the necessary interventions (resources, training, political support) and flexibility to get the job done.

Project GRAD, visit on 10/27/00

Project GRAD (Graduation Really Achieves Dreams) is a private, not-for-profit organization with a 12-year old scholarship program and a track record of improving student academic performance and increasing graduation rates. Project GRAD was begun by Jim Ketelsen, then-CEO of Tenneco, as a strategy to help low-income Houston students succeed in school and enter college. Ketelsen’s vision was to create a holistic intervention to start helping children when they are young and follow them through school into college by providing a range of supports to them and their families.

Project GRAD combines resources and expertise from local universities, foundations, corporations, community and national non-profit organizations, the federal government, the state of Texas, and HISD to work in partnership with school feeder patterns (all the elementary and middle schools that feed students into a high school). Project GRAD is also operating in a number of other urban school districts across the country, including Los Angeles, CA, Newark, NJ, Atlanta, GA, Columbus, OH, and Nashville, TN.

Project GRAD consists of five components:

Scholarships and Summer Institutes. All 9th grade students in participating schools are offered scholarships of between $1,000 and $1,500 per year for four years of college if they meet the following academic requirements: graduate on time with their class, achieve at least a 2.5 grade point average in college preparatory courses, attend two specially designed Summer Institutes, and take higher-level college prep courses, including Algebra II. Project GRAD’s campus-based Scholarship Coordinators work with students and parents by walking them through the college admission process and helping them apply for additional scholarship grants and loans.

Project GRAD students are required to attend two four-week Summer Institutes in order to receive their scholarship. These Institutes provide intensive college awareness activities, content-area instruction, and tutoring activities that do not fit well into the regular academic year programs. Professors from local universities work with students to improve their math, reading, science, and study skills. The Institutes are held on college campuses to help ease students’ anxieties about transitioning from high school to college.

Consistency Management and Cooperative Discipline (CMCD). Consistency Management and Cooperative Discipline is designed to help teachers and students create and maintain orderly classrooms by building a sense of structure in the classroom. Students are taught strategies for working together and assume classroom management responsibilities. Schools in the Davis feeder system in Houston experienced a 74% reduction in the number of discipline-related student referrals to the principal by the end of the fourth year of implementation. Teachers have reported that they have added almost three weeks of instruction time from time lost previously to discipline problems.

Move IT Math. Move IT Math is an instructional program that uses a wide variety of teaching tools to address the unique needs of students with different learning styles. It is a student-centered program for K-6 graders, introduces algebra to students in the early grades, uses children’s literature and science to give meaning and purpose to mathematics, emphasizes understanding math principles rather than memorization, encourages discovery of rules of math through the examination of patterns, and uses blocks and other manipulatives as part of the learning process.

Success for All (SFA). Success for All is a research-based, school-wide reading and writing program that emphasizes early and intensive intervention for children who are having trouble learning to read. It takes corrective measures to overcome reading problems while children are still young and before they become discouraged. SFA includes a reading and writing program, one-on-one tutoring by certified teachers, family support teams, pre-kindergarten and kindergarten instruction, and professional development for teachers.

Communities in Schools (CIS) and Parent University. Project GRAD provides a Communities in Schools social worker to each school in the feeder system. This professional plays four key roles: (1) helping at-risk children attend to problems that might distract them from learning; (2) focusing on increasing parent involvement in their children’s academic success; (3) providing counseling to address truancy, substance abuse, and family problems; and (4) coordinating tutoring and mentoring programs. CIS workers also play a convening role in the Family Support Team, which is a part of the SFA curriculum.

Project GRAD also has an innovative parental involvement program, designed to build a constituency for the local schools and a support base for student learning. Founders of Project GRAD feel that the lack of parental involvement is one of the most glaring needs of inner city schools. There are three major areas of emphasis. During the annual "Walk for Success," volunteers visit the homes of all the 1st, 2nd, 6th, and 9th graders about to enter a Project GRAD school. Parents learn of the availability and expectations of Project GRAD’s college scholarship and are encouraged to sign a contract that commits their children to the academic expectations of the scholarship program. Also during the "Walk for Success," parents are surveyed to identify their literacy levels and social and academic needs. Project GRAD then establishes a parental leadership team to help implement suggested course offerings. Parents are encouraged to "enroll" in the Parent University, which allows them to attend any of the classes offered at the elementary, middle, and high schools throughout the feeder patterns. In fall 2000, the "Walk for Success" involved 1500 volunteers visiting 5300 homes throughout Houston.

Funding for Project GRAD scholarships and start-up generally comes from the private sector. The up-front dollars are used to train teachers and staff in the curriculum and methods described above and for curriculum materials. Once the program has been initiated, Project GRAD only needs between $300-$500 per student to cover the other costs of participation, depending on how long the system has been part of the program. (Many costs, such as the CIS volunteers, are in-kind.)

In Houston, Project GRAD has been implemented in three feeder systems, which affect 41 inner city schools and approximately 26,000 students. For the past ten years, Project GRAD has conducted an evaluation of its effectiveness by collecting data on high school graduation and college attendance, student behavior and discipline, and student achievement. The following are a number of indicators of the program’s success:

• The percentage of college-bound high school graduates from the Davis feeder system has increased from an annual 12% to 45%, well above the national average of 37% for Hispanic seniors and 33% for African-American seniors.
• Students qualifying for the scholarships at Davis High School increased from 47% of graduates in 1992 to 60% of graduates in 1999.
• At Davis High School, passing rates on the Texas Assessment of Academic Skills increased from 42% in 1994 to 79% in 2000, and TAAS passing rates in reading increased from 51% to 82%.
• At Yates High School, TAAS passing rates in math went from 25% in 1996 to 71% in 1999, while TAAS passing rates in reading went from 63% to 83%.
• 74% of Yates elementary students passed TAAS math in 2000, up from 69% in 1999.
• Elementary schools in the Davis feeder system experienced a 74% reduction (1,017 to 268) in the number of discipline-related student referrals to the principal by the end of the fourth year of implementation of Consistency Management and Cooperative Discipline. Davis teachers estimated that the reduction in discipline problems associated with CMCD added an average of 2.7 weeks of additional instructional time to the 1998-99 school year.

Following this general briefing on Project GRAD, the AYPF group visited elementary, middle, and high schools to see the various program components.

Jefferson Elementary School has 725 students, 90% of whom are eligible for free and reduced price and are 90% Latino. At this elementary school, the AYPF group saw the Success for All and Consistency Management programs in action. It was clear that the focus of the school is on literacy. Books, reading materials, and student writing were omnipresent and classrooms for the younger children were designed to provide lots of access to books and comfortable places to read. Students are assessed every 8 weeks to determine their reading level and regrouped as necessary based on that level. This allows the teacher to be very focused on the skill level with smaller groups of students.

Because SFA and CMCD are fairly prescriptive, all teachers and students know exactly what will be taught on what day and when, and the students know exactly what is expected of them as well. While some have criticized SFA for being too directive, the teachers at Jefferson liked the approach because they could judge their students’ progress against clear rubrics and see very quickly when a student needed help.

Anson Jones Elementary showcased the Move IT Math program. The small school enrolls 329 students, 50% of who are Hispanic, 47% African American, 3% Asian, and 99% eligible for free and reduced price lunch. From first to fifth grade, students were learning math theory, the importance of patterns, and enjoying the manipulatives that help to make math more concrete. Move IT Math uses a number of unique practices to teach math skills that students used with success. One criticism of Move IT Math is that when students switch to a school outside of the feeder system that teaches math in a traditional way, the students are disadvantaged because they have not learned the traditional methods of solving problems (such as rote memorization of multiplication and division). However, the students we saw were very engaged in the math exercises and seemed to enjoy their problem-solving activities.

Fleming Middle School enrolls 679 students in grades 6, 7, 8, with 300 of those students participating in the Fine Arts Magnet School for orchestra, dance, and gymnastics. Students who attend the Fine Arts Magnet come from the local district and throughout the city. Demographics at Fleming include 38% Latino students, 1% Asian, and the remainder African American students. While students who attend the magnet take different electives and have access to more music and arts courses, the academic courses for all students are the same. Fleming Middle School benefits from most of the components of Project GRAD and uses Success for All, Move IT Math, early college awareness and preparation through summer institutes, the scholarship effort, as well as gaining a full-time counselor from Communities in Schools.

Dr. Chet Smith, Principal of Fleming Middle School, was very grateful to Project GRAD and indicated that because of Fleming’s participation in the program, additional teachers, counseling staff and volunteers were available. Fleming Middle School also received a GEAR-UP grant from the U.S. Department of Education that has been used to support Project GRAD activities by preparing students for college. The GEAR-UP program provided funds for 25 students to attend the Foundations for Algebra program, a month-long program to increase math skills. The program uses a student-run enterprise to teach career, work, and academic skills. Students see how math is applied in a business, and they also learn teamwork, communication, and employability skills. College students from the University of Houston serve as advisors to the project, with the added benefit that they are role models for the younger students. GEAR-UP and Project GRAD money also helped provide time off for teachers to be trained in math.

Dr. Smith said that parent involvement is critical to student and school success. With the support of Project GRAD, 500 parents came to the school’s open house this year. The CIS staff provides a range of services to the school and the community. They help coordinate family support teams to build greater communication between the school and its families. They provide information to parents on what their children are learning so parents can help their children with their homework and reinforce what they are learning at school. The full-time CIS counselor at Fleming has more time to spend with needy students, to work on community development projects, and to promote activities including mentoring, tutoring, counseling, self-esteem, enrichment, and field trips. The caseload for the CIS counselor is about 90 families, which is still large, but significantly better than one counselor for 700 or more students, which is typical at many large schools. CIS counselors assess what is going on outside of school with students, because they recognize that students cannot succeed if they are not focused on school.

Wheatley High School was opened as one of the first of three high schools for African American students in Houston. Its student population has traditionally been black, but is now changing to a split between African American and Latino students. Principal Bruce Goffney, said that his work is really about raising the bar for all students, and Project GRAD is the best way to do this with its focus on the feeder system. Wheatley High School will also be part of a comprehensive high school reform effort being supported in HISD with funds from the Carnegie Corporation of New York. Goffney indicated that the support from the Carnegie Corporation and the help from Project GRAD will allow the school to completely rethink the whole school design and start the school on the path to significant change.

Goffney indicated that the school does face some challenges. He said that of 300 ninth graders who start at Wheatley, only 100 graduate. The school has capacity for 1600-1800 kids, but the current enrollment is only 800. An issue that affects enrollment, said Goffney is that there is a perception that Wheatley is a "black" school, because of its history, and he said many Latinos don’t feel safe. And, parents in general do not consider Wheatley to be a safe learning environment because of some of the tensions between the African American students and the Latino students. Principal Goffney’s recognized the size of his task and indicated that Project GRAD and the Communities in Schools component is critical to changing these perceptions and attitudes.

The CIS component helps to provide programs for young men, 16-26, and in particular young fathers by providing year-round mentoring, leadership development, life management skills, and rites of passage for young men. Peer health counselors and older students work with the younger ones to educate them on the dangers of AIDS and drugs and to get them to consider the implications of becoming a father while in high school.

Wheatley has also been involved with the High Schools That Work (HSTW) network organized by the Southern Regional Education Board for five years. There is a recognition, especially by alumni, that not all kids are going to college and will need preparation for careers and work. HSTW is helping to provide the focus to do that. Goffney indicated that he wants all faculty trained by January 2001 in the 10 key HSTW practices so that everyone will be working together. He also wants Wheatley to be part of HSTW’s National Assessment of Educational Progress program and is beginning to prepare students to participate in those assessments. Goffney also said that funds from the Carl D. Perkins Vocational and Applied Technology Education Act had been very helpful in supporting travel to the professional development seminars provided by HSTW.

Wheatley has organized a steering committee with administration, teachers, students, community and business members, and parents to engage in the process of developing a 5-10 year plan to determine what competencies Wheatley High School students need and how to ensure they gain those skills. Initial plans are to focus on professional development, project-based learning, curriculum reform, and smaller learning communities using academies.

Observations

At the end of the day, a participant asked Jim Ketelson, the founder of Project GRAD, what his future dreams and goals were for the program. Ketelson responded that he would like to see Project GRAD in every feeder system across Houston; that he would like to have enough resources (money and space) to add a pre-kindergarten program; and he would like to add a science component at the elementary level and a technical component in computer learning in the upper grades. But Ketelson said he knows that finding the additional funding to provide these services is a huge barrier. His last comment was that through the years, the Project GRAD leaders have learned that the program must be a K-16 program, because even if students get into college, they do not always succeed. He said they still need support from the program to deal with the issues of academic requirements and social adjustment, and students need help all the way through the system.

Perhaps the key word to describe the programs we visited is holistic. Project GRAD in particular seeks to provide students and families with as many supports, both academic and personal, as is reasonable with limited resources and within the structure of school. Using the feeder system is another aspect of the holistic approach, by linking together elementary, middle, and high schools, as well as college outreach and preparation programs at colleges, and community support programs. The commitment to helping youth from the time they enter the K-12 system through high school graduation and into college is also very unique and provides an umbrella of support for children, not often found in most communities. Many Houston public schools face difficult challenges but seem well armed with strong leadership at the district level that is supportive of projects like Project GRAD, and a clear vision of what can be achieved if multiple interventions are brought together under one operating philosophy, as in Project GRAD.

DeBakey High School also provides a holistic environment for its students by enveloping them in the world of the health professions and supporting them through a smaller learning community. The high school helps students make the transition to ninth grade with peer mentors, counselors, and intensive academic remediation if needed. The school provides a range of courses that prepares students not only for college with solid academics, but also for careers in the health field. It helps students learn more about the medical and health professions fields by being located in the heart of a medical center. Work and schooling are integrated so that students learn the skills necessary for success in both.

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[1] The Office of Vocational and Adult Education, U.S. Department of Education recognizes New American High Schools as schools where all students are expected to meet both challenging academic standards and acquire the skills necessary for college and careers. Characteristics of NAHS include:

• Core activities of the school concentrate on student learning and achievement.
• All students are expected to master the same rigorous academic material. High expectations are established for student achievement.
• Staff development and planning emphasize student learning and achievement.
• The curricula are challenging, relevant and cover material in depth.
• Schools are using new forms of assessment.
• Students get extra support from adults.
• Students learn about careers and college opportunities through real-life experiences.
• Schools create small, highly personalized and safe learning environments.
• Technology is integrated into the classroom to provide high-quality instruction, and students have opportunities to gain computer and other technical skills.
• Periods of instruction are longer and more flexible.
• Strong partnerships are forged with middle schools and colleges.

Schools form active alliances with parents, employers, community members and policymakers to promote student learning and ensure accountability for results.

Contact Information

Dr. Charlesetta Collins-Deason, Principal
Michael DeBakey High School
for Health Professions
3100 Shenandoah
Houston, TX 77021-1097
713-714-2410

Kaye Stripling
Southwest District Superintendent
Houston Independent School District
5827 Chimney Rock
Houston, TX 77081-2714

Thelma Garza
East District Superintendent
Houston Independent School District
4600 Gulf Freeway, Mezzanine
Houston, TX 77023-3551

Dr. Deborah Singleton
Alternative District Superintendent
Houston Independent School District
5827 Chimney Rock
Houston, TX 77081-2714

Mr. Jim Ketelsen, Founder and Chairman
Sharon Jacobson, Executive Director
Billie Kennedy
Project GRAD
1100 Louisiana, Suite 450
Houston, TX 77002
713-757-5973

Ana Zamarripa, Principal
Jefferson Elementary School
5000 Sharman
Houston, TX 77009
713-696-2778

Charles Ross, Principal
Anson Jones Elementary School
2311 Canal
Houston, TX 77003
713-226-4530

Chet Smith, Principal
Fleming Middle School
4910 Collingsworth
Houston, TX 77026
713-641-4170

Bruce Goffney, Principal
Wheatley High School
4900 Market Street
Houston, TX 77020-6599
713-671-3900

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